Actress Rose McGowan was among those to voice concern about "casual violence against women" being used to market the latest X-Men film.

Following opposition to the advert, 20th Century Fox said it was removing the image from promotional materials for the blockbuster.

In a statement, the studio said: " In our enthusiasm to show the villainy of the character Apocalypse we didn't immediately recognise the upsetting connotation of this image in print form.

"Once we realised how insensitive it was, we quickly took steps to remove those materials. We apologise for our actions and would never condone violence against women."

McGowan told the Hollywood Reporter: "There is a major problem when the men and women at 20th Century Fox think casual violence against women is the way to market a film.

"There is no context in the ad, just a woman getting strangled. The fact that no one flagged this is offensive and frankly, stupid. The geniuses behind this, and I use that term lightly, need to to take a long hard look at the mirror and see how they are contributing to society."

A number of Twitter users also voiced concern about the image, with one writing: "The appeal of the X-Men poster showing Jennifer Lawrence being choked is that battery can be fun?"

Another added: "Anyone else bothered by the fact that one of the most prominent advertisements for X-Men: Apocalypse is Jennifer Lawrence being choked?"

X Men: Apocalypse - the ninth instalment of the X Men film series - has topped the UK box office chart for two weeks in a row and opened at the top spot at the North American box office last weekend.